Queen of Darkness
by Amorah Leigh
Summary: Driven by vengeance, the Evil Queen casts a different type of dark curse, one that takes her soul. With her vampire army, she finally has the power to make Snow White suffer, taking everything from her, including the White Princess. Emma. But maybe, little Emma is the promised savior after all? Maybe, just maybe, she was meant to save her. Eventual SwanQueen pairing.


**Driven by vengeance, the Evil Queen casts a different type of dark curse, one that takes her soul. With her vampire army, she finally has the power to make Snow White suffer, taking everything from her, including the White Princess. Emma. But maybe, little Emma is the promised savior after all? Maybe, just maybe, she was meant to save the Queen. Eventual SwanQueen pairing. There will be multiple chapters and multiple POV's.**

 **This story will be dark at times. Death and possibly torture may be a part this storyline. Please don't read if you are concerned by either.**

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There was no words to describe the feeling of dying. Especially not like this, her life draining slowly. For Regina, the pain was a small pinprick. Because of the darkness that filled her heart, she suffered no bone crushing weight or sharp stabbing knife. It was small ice needles, and while it wasn't altogether pleasant, it also wasn't unwelcome.

In a lot of ways, the chill permeating her blood was a soothing reprieve from the years of scars she carried. The magic tingled through her fingers, retreating passed her wrists and up her arms. As it did, emotions faded. The hurt and anger experienced at her mother's hand slipped away on a breath of air. The fear and embarrassment she'd felt during her marriage to Leopold crumbled to dust in her chest. Even the loss of her true love, Daniel, was numbed and eventually vanished.

She knew there was a tradeoff. All magic came with a price. This potion asked the ultimate sacrifice. She was dying, but her life wouldn't end. It wasn't her life the potion required. It was her humanity. Everything that made her Regina would cease to exist. But so would all the pieces of her that made her the Evil Queen. She'd lose her ability to feel joy, love and passion. She'd also lose her pain, sorrow and despair. She'd feel nothing. For her, that was more than a fair tradeoff.

When the spell completed, her heart had frozen, blood cold in her veins. Regina had stared at her reflection in the mirror, fingers tracing porcelain skin she could no longer feel. All that remained was a shell of a person, filled with cold calculation, power and thirst.

Her throat burned as her spell book promised it would. While she didn't mind the empty place in her heart where her humanity had been, her soul rebelled, seeking to rekindle the life she'd forsaken. There was no way to break the spell, short of someone driving a Lumotian Dagger through her heart. Her life would end and she'd crossover, restored. Luckily for her, there were only two daggers in existence, one of which was in her vault. The other? Lost. Not even her mirror could find it.

No. The curse wouldn't break unless she chose to end it herself. The only other way to calm her raging thirst was to drink living blood. She knew that would only give her a limited amount of peace. A couple days at most. As she aged, it would be less than that. Days would become hours. She'd become a monster unless she found her night blood mate. That was unlikely. Only one such pairing had ever been recorded throughout history. The vampire had found his partner after a century of waiting. So consumed by his thirst, he failed to recognize her blood calling to him, until the warm liquid passed his lips. Pale skin warmed, dark eyes expanding as his heart beat again for the first time in years. Only a night blood could weaken the spell that would never end. With a night blood mate, her thirst could lay dormant for weeks.

Odds weren't in her favor for that kind of a happy future. Neither was it likely for her kingdom. She was a monster long before now. How many had she killed while seeking vengeance on Snow White? How many had she tortured? She was what she was, and at least her revenge would finally be over tonight.

She crept through the moonlight, a handful of knights soundlessly moving with her. During her first few months as a vampire, she'd quenched her thirst by turning her soldiers into an army of the undead. As their sire, she didn't need to hold their hearts in her hand. They were powerless to her call when she gave a command. She could compel them to do as she desired, though she found no need. Most of her men were loyal to a fault and found joy in the new found power of their curse. They weren't blessed with the same torment as their creator. The loss of their humanity was slower, slipping between their fingers while they marveled at their increased strength and speed. They would thirst, but it would be another decade until their humanity finally died. Until then their need for blood wouldn't be all consuming.

They would need a plan when that happened. It was possible to own humans as feeders, but their lives would be fleeting, their life expectancies shortened if fed from to frequently. She had purposely left her palace staff mortal, but she would need many more humans if they were to survive.

Regina's eyes cut to the man beside her. He wasn't tall or muscular. To the naked eye, he wasn't much of a threat at all. That was part of his appeal and why she had kept her huntsman alive all these years. Well, part of the reason.

Her fingers brushed his arm, drawing his attention. Though her voice was a low vibration, she knew the rest of her men could hear. Even the ones who had tracked to the far side of the castle.

"Feed if you desire and kill soldiers if you must. Capture everyone else."

He nodded and her knights broke away, darting through the trees. They bounded over the palace walls as if scaling a small fence. The White Palace wouldn't know what hit them.

Regina waited until she heard the first scream. The sound crackled in the dark, igniting her thirst and a need to hunt. Lifting her hand, magic once purple surrounded her, thick black smoke taking her to the royal tower. She froze in the dark when the smoke cleared and tilted her head to gain her bearings. Footsteps sounded hard against the stone floor and for a moment she expected a dozen soldiers to sweep by. Even after months as a vampire, there were still moments when she had to readjust her senses, reading sights, scents and sounds as much closer than they were.

The footsteps were in the stairwell, palace guards running to block the tower door. Her knights would destroy their attempts in seconds. Regardless, Regina would have already completed her reason for coming here.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. There were four blood scents nearby, filling her mouth with the flavor of dark chocolate, maple syrup, and dark red wine. The fourth flavor was softer, a taste she couldn't place, but it stirred a longing that set her throat on fire. She wondered who the signature belonged to. It amazed her how each human had their own taste. Their hearts also beat unique rhythms, providing an identification that made them much easier to track.

She followed the procussion to a large set of oak doors. Flicking her wrist, the locks clicked free as another wave of her hand pushed the doors open. The whiz of an arrow pricked her ear, her hand responding before she had a chance to process her next thought. She caught the arrow near her head, breaking it in half with the snap of her fingers. She tossed it aside.

Snow had already pulled a second arrow from her quiver, the string of her bow creaking as she positioned for another shot.

"I have a dozen more of these. How many lucky catches do you think you have?"

Regina smirked, stepping closer. "Twelve, dear."

"What do you want?" Snow asked through gritted teeth. Her eyes were leveled, her gaze filled with fire. Regina couldn't blame her. She was a tigress protecting her family, her cub tucked under the arm of a young servant girl. Still, her anger couldn't cover the soft tremble in her voice. As a human, Regina wouldn't have noticed the vibrations that ran together like a soft hum. As a vampire, she could smell fear, her senses picking up on the smallest indications.

Regina's eyes cut to the farmer on her right. Charming. His sword was raised, his stance defensive rather than offensive. He wouldn't attack if she didn't provoke him. He was smarter than her looked. His eyes regarded her, a perplexed expression on his face as he took in the subtle changes in her appearance.

"Is that any way to welcome guests?" She lifted her hands, a catlike smile spreading across her face.

"You aren't our guest," he growled.

"You know you're right." Regina tilted her head, lifting a hand to her ear though she had no need of it. Neither did the Charmings. "Can you hear that?" She asked as a particularly piercing scream echoed through the room. "I guess I should have asked if that was anyway to treat the person who holds your life in her hands."

"You can't hurt us in this realm, Regina," Snow said. "This invasion is pointless."

Regina stalked closer. "You're half right. Your protective spell keeps me from physically harming you, so long as I'm alive. You'll find I no longer am."

Snow met Charming's confused glance, both of them wracking their minds to understand what she was saying. "What did you do?" Snow asked, her voice a mix of reverence and disgust.

She wrinkled her nose, bringing her fingers together over here chest. "Found a loop hole."

She lifted her hand and Charming lunged, his sword sweeping by her chest. She reacted without thought, stepping out of his way in a blur of motion. Her strike was just as fast. Before Charming had a chance to turn around, she'd latched onto his hand and squeezed. The bones cracked, the sound sharper than the metal sword hitting the floor.

His scream was primal, closer to a creature of the night than a human. She had half a mind to turn him and make Snow watch as she compelled him to destroy her. She almost did. But there was a better option. So long as the farmer lived, Snow White would have hope. Regina couldn't enact true suffering if hope lived. She had to remove it.

Twisting his arm behind his back, Regina jerked Snow's true love in front of her. Snow's eyes had gone wide. Whether her reaction was due to her husband's captive state or Regina's new abilities, she was uncertain.

Slowly, Snow lowered her bow. "Regina." Her voice was tentative now, testing. "Please let him go." Her tongue poked out between parched lips. "It's me you want. It's always been me."

"Very true. But you're forgetting one thing." She gripped Charming's arm tighter and he winced, sucking air through his teeth. "Why did I want you, Snow?"

Regina hadn't thought it was possible for Snow White's skin to grow more pale. Yet, at her words, blood drained from her face, painting Snow's cheeks an ashy gray. "Regina."

"What did you take from me?"

"Please."

"Answer me!"

Her reply was breathless, undetectable to anyone but Regina. "Your true love."

Her lips pulled into a tight smile, slowly revealing pearly white teeth and two pointed fangs. She waited for Snow to lunge forward, and struck. In one quick motion she'd jerked Charming back by his hair, her teeth sinking in to his throat. Blood poured into her mouth, warming her veins as it slid down her throat for a brief moment she was able to feel. At first it was only the farmer's emotions: love, heartbreak and resignation. Then her own body responded. She'd taken Snow's love the way Snow had taken hers. She had succeeded in ending Snow's happiness and while Charming's blood coursed through her, she allowed herself to bask in the satisfaction, nearly trembling with pleasure.

Snow's wail was a sweet song, more beautiful than any ballad. She crawled across the floor and Regina dropped the body to the floor, watching as the princess pulled her husband into her arms, crimson staining her white dress and perfect skin.

"No. No no no." Snow mumbled incoherently, shaking her head. She gripped Charming's shoulders and shook him, a scream tearing from her throat. The sound was a combination of nails on a chalk board and gravel, scraping and clawing its way from her soul.

"How does it feel?" Regina asked, stepping behind Snow. "How does it feel to lose the thing you love most?"

Snow's eyes turned up, red rimmed but burning with fire. "You're pure evil."

"I am," Regina agreed, slowly stepping backwards. "And you made me that way."

In her despair, Snow had forgotten about the child and her maid, quivering in the corner of the room. She remembered now though, scrambling up from beneath the lifeless body of her husband. His head hitting the stone with a resounding thunk, forgotten as Snow shuffled forward. She held her arm out, hand facing up. "Regina, don't. She's a child. Killing her-"

"Would be soul crushing for you, don't you think."

"Regina, I'm begging you. Take my life. I'll do anything you want, give you anything you want, just please-"

"Save your breath, Snow." She flicked her finger and the maid flew away from them into the far wall, the curtains ensnaring her arms and legs. The little girl didn't blink. She stared at Regina, green eyes wide and uncertain, whimpering softly, but not quite afraid. Her eyes were red rimmed, tear streaks smudging her cherub cheeks. At three years old, she didn't understand what was happening. But she understood danger. She understood her mother's screams.

Regina's approach was tentative. She didn't want to spook the girl.

"Hello, precious," Regina cooed. She reached for the girl, her fingers slipping beneath the toddler's armpits and lifting her into the air. The soft scent she'd smelled earlier filled her nose, causing Regina's mouth to water involuntarily. There was no reason she should have needed blood after taking the farmer's life, but her body was filled with a need she didn't understand. She wanted the girl's blood, but a deeper instinct made her hesitant. She didn't want to hurt the girl. She wanted her to live. _To protect her?_ "Well aren't you a conundrum," she whispered, perplexed.

"Please, Regina," Snow tried again, her hands reaching for the child.

"Hush, Snow." Regina turned from her, her arms holding the child closer as a soft cry broke from the girl's throat, her tiny chest heaving as she sniffled. "You're scaring her. You don't want her to be afraid, do you?"

Snow shrunk back. How odd it was to see her so obedient. Had she listened this well as a child, they wouldn't be in this situation. But Snow hadn't. She'd been spoiled and selfish, and like hell would Regina let Snow contaminate this child the way Leopold had contaminated Snow, rotting the girl to the core.

She picked up the toddler's hand, holding it carefully. The girl's skin felt warm to Regina's touch, which was normally numb. She had faint sensations in her skin after feeding, but not normally this strong. "Emma," she whispered, her voice soothing. "That's your name, isn't it? Look here, Emma. Look at me." She waited until she had the child's gaze and let her magic float between them. "There's a good girl. You just focus on me and you won't feel a thing."

"No, Regina."

Regina didn't break her connection, but sent a blast of magic is Snow's direction, silencing the sobbing princess. "Sweet Emma." The child stared back at her in wonder, her cries fading as Regina seeped into her mind, compelling calmness and tranquility. Regina didn't want the child to hurt or be afraid. Not of anything but especially not of her. "I should have removed you first, Little One. I won't make that mistake again. Don't worry, you won't remember a thing."

She wiped the girl's mind of her father's death and brought Emma's hand to her lips. She pressed a soft kiss to her palm, before allowing her fang to prick the child's finger. Emma felt nothing, but Regina… She felt everything.

One drop of blood. That was all she took and that was all she needed. Heat flooded her veins, color returning to her cheeks as her heart gave a small shudder. Releasing a gasp, Regina's grip on the girl tightened, her eyes going wide. The first beat of her dead heart sounded in her ears, loud and deep to her sensitive hearing. She was alive. At least temporarily. And she felt amazing. She had no pain. None of her old wounds reopened. What she felt was love. Love for this child who would one day be her mate. She had found her night blood. Now she just needed to decide what to do with her.

Her castle was no place for a child, and within a few short years, her home would be one of the most dangerous places in the entire forest. She couldn't bring Emma there. No, she needed to find someone to watch over Emma and take the best possible care of the young girl, without completely ruining her. For that she had an idea, but first things first.

Turning back to Snow, a cat-like smile lit her face as she released her magic prison and allowed Snow's cries to be heard, the soft "take me" playing over and over again like a mantra.

"I'm going to take you, just not in the way you think. I won't make you watch your child die, but neither will I end your miserable life. You will spend the rest of your days in my dungeon, living with your losses the way I've spent years living with mine."

"No, don't-"

Regina waved her arm and Snow disappeared, safely confined in a cell beneath her castle. She would have to fortify it later. She couldn't have one of her knight's accidentally ending Snow's life. Snow would live, Regina would make sure of it, even if that meant giving her an elixir of immortality. That was probably best now that she thought of it. Snow would age and eventually die, but while she lived she would need nothing. Not food. Not water. Not sleep. There would be nothing to distract her from her grief and pain. No way to end her torment.

Regina sighed, more content than she'd been in years. Her lips brushed over the child's brow. The child had fallen into a pacified silence her eyes heavy as she rested on Regina's shoulder. "Come on, sweet one. We have a little stop to make."

Her magic surrounded them, carrying them away from the carnage at the white palace, to a castle carved into the mountain side by the sea. A perfect home for a dragon. And for her little Emma.

Regina pushed through the foreboding metal doors. The entry way was as expansive as it was luxurious. Plush rugs covered the cold floors, jagged walls leading to the main living room. Stalactites stabbed the air above them, hidden gems sparkling in the torch light. Many a knight had sacrificed his life for the precious treasures earthed in the dragon's lair. None had been successful. Their skeletons disintegrated instantly in the magic flames, something no normal fire could accomplish.

"Maleficent?"

"What are you doing here, Regina?" The blonde woman slunk from the shadows, her sapphire eyes narrowed into slits. "Haven't you caused enough damage?" Her hand held a scepter, an ancient amplifier of her power. It was coated in dragon scales, spikes winding around the staff like a snake. Each point was laced with venom and lethal to any foe foolish enough to get too close. An orb sat on top, held in place by talon claws. To the untrained eye, the gold dust swirling within was nothing more than sand and rock. Those who studied magic knew better. The orb contained the power of every dragon who had died throughout the realm.

Though Maleficent was mortal, she was born of dragon blood, the last of an old race of witches. Even in human form, her movements were strong and purposeful, attuned to the atmosphere around her. Her pose now wasn't exactly threatening, but Regina didn't miss how her scepter lowered, tilting in Regina's direction.

"Get out."

"Still mad about that spell book? If you had just given it to me-"

"Look at yourself, Regina! You're covered in blood, the White princess in your arms and can you feel anything? Was it even worth it?"

Regina swayed her hips, rocking back and forth as Emma stirred in her arms. She dropped her voice to a whisper. "I do and it was."

Maleficent was the picture of regality. She was composed in a way Regina had never mastered. Even during her years married to Leopold. She had played the part of the poised queen, but those who really looked would have found fury and murder in her eyes. Luckily no one ever had.

But Maleficent? She never lost control. She waited and planned. She rarely started fights but that didn't mean she couldn't finish them. If she wanted to. So far she hadn't. A trait of dragon blood was fierce loyalty to those you loved. It was also the safety net Regina was banking on now. If Maleficent hadn't killed her when she stole the spell book, surely she wouldn't do so now. "I just need a moment of your time. Hear me out."

Maleficent didn't speak, her expression guarded as she truly observed Regina for the first time. Her eyes slid over the child in her arms and then snapped back to meet Regina's gaze. "What are you planning to do with her?"

"That's why I'm here."

Mal crossed the room, settling in a large oak chair beside her fireplace. "I won't help you kill her."

"Had I intended to kill her, I would have done so already." Regina took the seat opposite of her. "You were right. Using that spell was… reckless." She held up a hand, silencing Mal's I told you so. "I don't regret my decisions, but now that my revenge is complete, I need your help to ensure I don't do harm to anyone else."

"Meaning?"

"I need you to cast a confinement curse, and a desolation spell probably wouldn't hurt either."

"You want me to trap you."

Regina kept her eyes on Emma's face. "I do."

"And remove the castle from this realm?"

"Yes."

Mal snorted, turning back to the fire. "I think you've over estimated my abilities."

"I haven't."

"Why? Why would you want that? Do you know what that will mean for you?"

Regina nodded. "You need to cast a spell that will keep my men and I from leaving the castle grounds. And you need to keep others from finding their way to my doorstep. You know what my future is. You know what we will become and what we'll be capable of. If measures aren't put into place, we will turn the Enchanted Forest to ashes. Don't let that happen."

Maleficent sat up straight, gripping the arm rests and turning her knuckles white. "And what about you? What's your plan? Suffer until the emptiness consumes you? Do you think you'll be able to use that dagger on yourself before it's to late? Before you late and you lose all sense of awareness?"

"I won't have to. Fifteen years, Mal. I need you to keep me confined for fifteen years."

"And then what?"

"Bring Emma to me."

Mal stared at her, blue eyes flicking to the child. "What?"

"I need you to look after her."

"If you think I'm going to raise that child after Snow and her husband-"

"Don't you think that's more reason to do it?" Regina leaned towards her friends. "They stole your child. Getting to have theirs is a pretty fitting justice don't you think?"

"Maybe if you hadn't killed her parents. What good does it do me if Snow never has to feel the loss of her child? Never know how it feels to have her baby slip through her fingers. To know she will never hold her again. Never get to hear her voice or see her grow up!"

Regina stretched out her hand, finger's covering those of her friend. "What do you think locking yourself here alone will do to you? You don't need curse to feed the empty void inside you." Her lips stretched thin, pulling back over her teeth. "Besides, I didn't kill Snow. I'll make sure she knows exactly where Emma is and who has her. I may even imply Emma is paying for her choices."

Mal's gaze fell over Emma's face. "And what are your plans for her exactly? If you think I'll raise her only to let you kill her when she comes of age…"

"I have no desire to kill her." Regina tucked a stand of blonde hair behind the child's ear. "She's going to save us all."


End file.
